Private schools: Students half a world away are exchanging their food, music and ideas with the Canterbury School in Lee County thanks to the Cultural Bridges Science and Social Science program. Fort Myers News-Press. Palm Beach County private schools open their doors to students of a local Christian school that announced it’s closing. Palm Beach Post.
Faith-based schools: Jacksonville’s Catholic schools provide about 46,000 meals to the needy each year. Florida Times-Union.
Charter schools: Tucked in Gov. Rick Scott’s proposed budget is a provision for new charter schools that want state construction funding to locate in neighborhoods with schools identified as struggling by the state’s A-F grading system. Tallahassee Democrat.
School choice: Choice options, and fairness, are growing by leaps and bounds, writes Lloyd Brown for Sunshine State News.
Collegiate high schools: A Florida lawmaker tells the Tampa Bay Times he plans to file a proposed bill requiring state colleges to partner with school districts to create collegiate high schools, where students can earn a diploma and an associate degree in a rigorous college environment.
Digital learning: Florida students could choose computer programming courses instead of a foreign language as part of a bill to help Florida schools add more technology and digital instruction. StateImpact Florida.
School safety: The union representing schools police officers reports a marked increase in the number of guns seized from within Miami-Dade County Public Schools in the first half of the school year. Miami Herald.
Evolution: Why are we still debating evolution in education, asks Beth Kassab for the Orlando Sentinel.
Dyslexic students: Duval County’s superintendent wants to add more services for dyslexic students. Florida Times-Union.
Financial literacy: The Florida Department of Education wants to hear the public’s thoughts on proposed standards for financial literacy, guidelines for what students should learn so they can “make responsible and effective financial decisions.” Orlando Sentinel.
Common Core: By turning the new state standards into a political ping-pong game, we are ignoring the voices of teachers who have already invested tremendous time and effort implementing these standards and ignoring the voices of citizens, universities, and employers calling for college- and career-ready students, writes a Boca Raton middle school teacher for the Miami Herald.
School boards: Duval County School Board member Fel Lee says he won’t chase another four-year term. Florida Times-Union. The Hillsborough County School Board is set to decide today the fate of a teacher accused of failing to keep track of a student who walked 5 miles home during the school day. The Tampa Tribune.
Pay raises: Hernando County’s union president offers more information on performance pay. Tampa Bay Times.
Imagine solutions: About 400 to 500 Southwest Florida business and education leaders will attend the 2014 Imagine Solutions Conference later this month to look at education, health care and technology. Fort Myers News-Press.
Shakespeare: Miami-Dade County students are introduced to Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra during special performances. Miami Herald.
Conduct: A former Hernando County elementary school principal is disciplined after he fails to properly report three cases of teacher-on-teacher harassment last year. Tampa Bay Times.
Lawsuit: Parents sue the Hillsborough County school district, saying their son’s high school didn’t do enough to protect him. Tampa Bay Times.
